wrapsody – Vegan Babymama

What Can You Do With A Wrapsody WrapDuo?

Last year I did a blog post on the Wrapsody WrapDuo, a sport wrap that can be used both wet and dry. Over past year, I’ve gotten to use it more, as well as other water carriers. These things are genius!

You can take a hands-free shower without a screaming baby in the other room stressing you out. And nurse them at the same time! Then there is the joy for moms and children alike: summer water activities. Pools, splash pads, calm streams, and other fun water features.

General rules for babywearing water safety:

First, follow all the standard rules of babywearing.

Follow all instructions for the design of the carrier.
Make sure baby’s airway is clear and unobstructed at all times. Chin off chest and no fabric over their face.
Baby is secured in the carrier and it fits tightly against your body. You should both move as a cohesive unit.
Baby sits in a natural position on your body, close enough to kiss the top of their head easily.

Also, keep these safety rules in mind:

Be mindful of the water level. Baby’s head should never go under water. And watch for waves that can splash baby unexpectedly.
Make sure the spray/current it not too powerful. Don’t want baby to get knocked out of the carrier or be injured.
Watch the water temperature. Too cold can cause hypothermia and too hot can cause burns. Just use common sense and keep an eye on baby.

Keeping all that, wearing baby in the water can be really fun! You can stay cool, keep baby happy, and do some fun carries! The WrapDuo is suitable for most front and hip carries. That means you can try different carries as your baby grows.

You can start with a Pocket Wrap Cross Carry. A great beginner carry, very supportive for smaller baby without head control.

It’s also a poppable carry, meaning you can take baby in and out without needing to take the wrap off.

Easy to take baby out for a diaper change, then right back in for fun.

Makes chasing a toddler around a splash pad easier with a newborn.

Another snuggly to try while baby is working on head and trunk control is the Kangaroo Carry.

It is a bit more advanced, but very supportive once you get the hang of the shoulder flip.

Perfect for snuggles when baby is tired.

You can keep playing while they fall asleep, then set them down very easily in this carry since there are no cumbersome cross passes to take off.

Next try a Front Wrap Cross Carry. Still very supportive and suitable for a smaller baby.

However, it is great for a baby who has better body control but isn’t mobile yet. They can look around easily and pull their arms out to explore.

And if they get sleepy, you can spread the cross passes and support their head while you rock them to sleep.

This is a wet/dry wrap, so it is ideal for a day at the splash pad when you don’t really plan on getting wet but don’t want to risk ruining a beloved wrap.

When your baby is close to no longer being a baby, hip carries are a great options. Baby can look forward more while still snug to your body.

Try a Robin’s Hip Carry, easy to adjust as baby wiggles around and very supportive.

If you are having a hard time tightening the WrapDuo with your bigger baby, try getting the wrap totally wet first. It denses up and becomes more supportive.

The dry weight limit is 25 lbs, while the wet limit is 35 lbs. And there is a notable difference once baby gets close to 25 lbs mark when dry.

As your baby turns into a toddler, you can still get some use out of your WrapDuo.

I suggest going back to a poppable carry, like a Front Cross Carry.

Your toddler can work on their swimming skills until they get tired, then pop them in the wrap for some snuggles.

Water babywearing has been around for a long time. How do you think women fished and got water for thousands of years? But I am sure they would have loved the quick drying material of modern day water carriers. Get a water carrier like the WrapDuo and work on some new carries while you explore the water with your child!

Water Babywearing

You know the one drawback to being an experienced mom? You get to facepalm yourself when you find a new product that could have made your life easier from the start. Babywearing allowed me to eat, go to the bathroom, and clean up around the house while keeping Jack happy. But I always had to wait until he was either asleep (and do the paranoid mom checking the monitor every 30 seconds) or wait until Michael got home. And sometimes things got so busy I forgot to shower (more like I fell asleep before I could even think of it), that it could be days before I got the chance. Jack loved baths with me, but sometimes you need a good standing scrub to feel clean. Sometimes Michael would hold him in the shower, but it’s hard to shower and hold a baby (they get heavy after awhile!).

Hard to thread, slid down easily, choked me, and only instructions were for front facing.

A few months later I bought a water ring sling to use at my sister-in-law’s house. It got the job done but was not comfy at all. I used in the shower when I needed to (like when I remembered it’s been 3 days since I had a good shower), but never really loved it. It made Jack happy, so I decided to hold on to it. But I knew I was not going to use it with another baby. It would be back to dreaming of showers.

Then Lorene from Frogmama let me test out Wrapsody WrapDuo and everything changed. The night it arrived, Jack and I took tested it in the shower. It was a hit!

We tried a Front Wrap Cross Carry, one of Jack’s favorite carries. He was so happy! All secure and tight—I could never get that stupid ring sling tight so he was never this secure before. It was easy to nurse in to (because toddler logic says a shower is a great time to nurse….).

Happy husband to wear his son, grumpy baby ready for a nap.

A few days later I let Michael try it out at the local splash pad. Jack was grump and didn’t want to get wet. But Michael liked the wrap a lot. He liked that I could pre-tie it on him, pop Jack in and out as needed. He said it would have been nice to have used when Jack was a newborn in the shower (that’s when I facepalmed myself).

Jack is shocked at how supportive it is at the pool!

Then we tried it out at the pool and it was another big hit! Sadly, I forgot to check the open swim times and we only got to swim for a half an hour. But it was a savior in the showers afterward. Jack was furious we got out of the pool so early. I kept him in the wrap and rinsed us off quick and ran to the car with no fuss. It was very comfortable in a wet Robin’s Hip Carry while we got the chance though.

Lastly, we had a playdate with Myste, another Brand Ambassador, at a pool with a splash pad. It was a little chilly when we arrived but Jack wanted to check out the splash pad still. He stayed warm enough in the wrap close so my body that he was happy to play. Later we went into the pool, and Jack was still just as happy. This time we did a Front Cross Carry so I could pop him in and out as needed. And it was once again a life saver in the showers. Jack was upset playtime was over, but we got right into a warm shower and he calmed down.

Here are my final thoughts on the WrapDuo…

Not toddler worthy when dry unfortunately.

Cons:

The wrap is only suitable for front and hip carries since it is a stretchy wrap. This is a good thing because it not safe to have your baby in water and not be able to see them their head level in the water. Since this is a wet/dry wrap, it kind sucks you can’t use dry on the back. It would have been a lot easier to carry my bag and the wet towels to the car after the pool with him on my back.
It’s not toddler worthy out the water. The dry weight limit is 20 pounds, which means Jack at 22 pounds was technically too heavy. So when I was wrapping him before the we got in the shower first time, it was really hard to get him tight enough without popping his heat. And Michael said he felt like Jack could have just leaned back and fell out when he was walking to splash pad. I am sure this would not been an issue at all with a baby under the weight limit.
They take a while to dry. You know how your swimsuit can still be wet after hanging in the shower hours later? The wrap is made of similar material, so it also can be awhile before it it totally dry. Not a big deal, but it is more wet thing you have to shove back into your bag.

Even wet, it is small enough to fit in a small bag.

Pros:

It is easy to put on and take off. It’s light weight, glides nicely when tightening, but still makes a nice secure knot. No complicated rings to thread or buckles to snap. As long as you know the basics of wrapping, than you are set! And when Jack wanted out to play on the steps of the pool, I just pulled him right out with no fuss. Plus you can do all your favorite front and hip carries, so it is very versatile.
It is toddler worthy in the water. The wet weight limit is 30 pounds, which covers most kids well into toddlerhood. I never had issues tightening and securing Jack when the wrap was wet. It felt like any other good quality wrap. It did not dig or hurt in any way either.
Easy to store. It is very light weight and folds up small even when wet. It didn’t hog up space in the diaper bag or feel like I was carrying any extra weight. Nothing is worse than your diaper bag weighing more than your baby.

Overall, the WrapDuo is a great wrap. Like I said, I am facepalming myself for not knowing about it when Jack was still a clingy baby who never me set him down. I could have at least been nursing him for 30 minutes straight while I took a warm shower!

Thanks Frogmama for letting us testing it out! I so need one when I have another baby.

Love In Motion: Confidence From Babywearing

You probably have seen on Instagram and Facebook page that I am a Brand Ambassador for Wrapsody Baby. I wanted to share how this came about and how babywearing changed my life.

DSCN0530 — This mom is tired, overwhelmed and exhausted. But thankful for her wrap!

When my son was born, I thought I knew what kind of mom I was going to be. Then reality set in. I was tired and very overwhelmed. Jack wanted to be held ALL THE TIME. I can remember vividly one night crying to my husband that I was a terrible mother because I couldn’t make my son happy. He reassured me that was not true, he’s just being a newborn. I found babywearing by chance (check it out my Babywearing Journey post) and everything changed.

Wrap City 062815_DSC_1254A — Compare this to the picture above. I look like a goddess and felt so strong. Photo credit: Mike Skelly (my dad!)

It also made me feel pretty. I lost my baby weight pretty easily, but my body was still different. Some of my old clothes didn’t fit the same. And my whole wardrobe had to be easy to nurse it. Some days this meant sweat pants and tank top—not the most attractive outfit. But once I started wearing all these gorgeous carriers with bright patterns and colors, I felt pretty good again. It was like a walking advertisement that said “Look at me! I am a mom, there is spit up on my shirt, but I am still beautiful.”

Babywearing also helped me find new social circles. I did not have too many friends in California. And the ones I did have, were not parents so it became hard to relate to them. I joined Babyweaing International to get help with wrapping and ended up meeting other awesome moms as well. Then I started talking about babywearing with my family and friends. I got so many questions that I started talking about it on this blog and on my personal Facebook. This also spread onto my Instagram and people all over the world began to comment.

1528597_10102074619652496_5613930373869619738_n — The first time we ever tried a Wrapsody at a BWI meeting. This is a Breeze Iris, I loved how light it was!

Then one day when I was just surfing Instagram I saw something interesting. Wrapsody was accepting applications for Brand Ambassadors. I figured why not? I had played with a Breeze at BWI meeting and liked it. It would be fun to work with a wrap company and learn new things.

I had to order Haumea. It reminds me of laying on the beach in Hawaii. Photo credit: Mike Skelly (my dad!)

Then I realized I didn’t know too much about the company or the wraps. I ordered my own Breeze directly from Wrapsody and bought a Stretch-Hybrid off the Wrapsody Love Facebook group. Jack is a big boy so I was worried they might not be supportive enough. I was wrong! Both wraps are totally toddler-worthy. And they will be great for my next baby because both are soft and supportive enough for a newborn as well. They come in so many colorways, too. There is truly something for everyone (there is even a Doctor Who wrap!).

Chronos, for all my fellow Whovians! Photo credit: Mike Skelly (my dad!)

Then I did some research on the company itself and fell madly in love. It was founded by Kristi, a mom who realized she needed a job where she could stay home with her kids and do something she loves (like me!). She loved babywearing, but could not afford carriers for $100+, so she started to make her own. Years later that morphed into a international company with multiple wraps collections. The wraps are inexpensive, quality, ethically made, and vegan! Wrapsody is still a small company today, it is just Kristi and her business partner Colleen. This is a match made in heaven for me. Their motto is “Babywearing is Love In Motion”, and that is exactly what babywearing is to me. I get to carry my son close while we explore, and I get to actively spread the love to other parents.

I never imagined I would doing tutorials on how to babywear!

Then last week I had strange moment, the kind when your realize your dreams are coming true and can’t believe it. I came up with the idea of Wrapsody Weekly Wrap Challenge. A new carry each for 20 weeks, to help people work on their wrapping skills. I did one through BWI of the Bay Area and it helped me understand the fundamentals of wrapping. Last week Kristi posted my tutorial video for a Front Double Hammock on the Wrapsody Facebook page and I was speechless. I never imagined this is where my life would be 2 years ago. Back in July 2013, I was bawling my eyes out of fear when I found out I was pregnant. I had no idea where my life was going and how I was going to handle a baby. July 2014, I was still a confused new mom trying to figure out her place in life. And now, July 2015, I am confident mom who has plans and goals for the future. I am starting a local babywearing group in my hometown, applying to be a Volunteer Babywearing Educator with BWI of Portland, and even looking into becoming a Certified Babywearing Educator. Babywearing has opened so many doors for our family, and I am truly thankful. Thankful for the bond it created for my family. Thankful for the career options it’s providing. Thankful to Wrapsody for helping my dreams become a reality. And most of all, I am thankful for the confidence babywearing gave to me.

Wrap City 062815_DSC_1454A — Love and confidence in motion. How gorgeous is Chosen? Photo Credit: Mike Skelly (my dad!)

***This is not a sponsored blog post. These are my own, independent thoughts. Wrapsody or any other entity did not pay me to these make any statements.